TRENTON — Russia’s military invasion into the Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula on Saturday has world leaders up in arms — and has local Ukrainian-Americans praying for an end to violence.

“This is very sad that this is happening to people in our nation,” said the Rev. Zinoziy Zharsky of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Holy Trinity in Trenton. “We didn’t expect that our neighboring country would act this way.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin seemed to ignore warnings from world leaders on Sunday to stand down and not deploy forces into the politically unstable neighboring country.

On Sunday, The Ukrainian National Security Council ordered troops to be ready for battle as Putin secured Russia’s Parliament approval to send forces into the Ukraine. In an apparent attempt to create brinkmanship, Putin’s move prompted fierce action from American Leaders.

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“Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine constitutes a clear violation of international law and demands a swift and coordinated response from the international community to support the Ukraine and counter Russian efforts to annex Ukrainian territory by force,” said U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is developing a bipartisan legislative package to provide critical support to Ukraine, which is teetering on the brink of economic collapse following years of chronic government mismanagement and corruption. This legislation will authorize funds to provide at least $1 billion in loan guarantees to provide structural support to Ukraine’s economy, as well as authorize technical assistance for energy reforms, support elections, strengthen civil society, combat corruption, and assist Ukraine in the recovery of stolen assets.”

Among local Ukrainians, there has been an outpouring of prayers and money to help pay for necessary medical care in the region. “Last Sunday, in church, we had about 40 people and we collected over $1,000,” said David Dubnansky, president of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Holy Trinity in Trenton.

Donations are sent to the Bound Brook diocese and thanks to a sizable local immigrant population, those in the Ukraine who desperately need medical care or food as a result of the uprising, will receive the monies, according to Dubnansky.

“You do have a lot of pro-Russian people in that area of the Ukraine and eastern Ukraine has a lot of cultural similarities with Russia,” he said. “When Russia sees a weak point, which is the many who are pro-Russian, then Russian political leaders take advantage of that and you never know what they are thinking. But is a foothold to the rest of the Ukraine.”